Halfway to Nowhere
by Akihito Kage
Summary: Bakura is a student at Middlesborough Art and Design University in England. His life is far from normal and that's just the way he likes it.   Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1: Life Beyond These Walls

This is pretty much my first multi-chapter fic posted on here XD I tend to shove my one-shots on here, and the only huge chaptered fic I wrote was for NaNoWriMo last November which I didn't post on here 'cause I wasn't sure who would get it, since it was kind of between me and my friends.

Anyway, I present to you _Halfway to Nowhere_ :D 

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 1 - _Life Beyond These Walls_

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"Bollocks!" Came a loud cry from across the table. Bakura looked up with a slight grin at the sight of his supposed best friend sucking his finger. The tanned blonde was glaring at the needle in front of him with such venom that he wondered if it would explode into flames.

"Stab yourself again, Mal'?" He chuckled, looking back down at the sketchbook in front of him, covered in a mess of pencil lines and shapes.

"I don't know what's wrong with me today. I never stab myself with needles." Malik whined, brushing his fluffy hair out of his eyes with a pout. "Must be having an off day." He said off-handedly, inspecting the damned the sharp metal had done.

"Why not just run it through the machine like you usually do?" The pale boy sat nearby looked up once more, putting the pencil in his hand behind his ear as he sat back in his seat, one foot pulled up to rest on the chair.

"I promised myself I'd do this project by hand. I need to get used to not using a sewing machine." Malik replied. He'd put down his fabrics and was still glaring at the needle set on top of them, still sucking on his finger. He pulled it out of his mouth and winced looking at it. "Urgh, it's bleeding pretty badly."

Bakura leaned over and swiftly grabbed the other boy's wrist, shoving the bleeding appendage in his mouth and licking up the blood. Malik retracted his hand quickly with an indignant squeak. The albino just sat back again with a throaty laugh. "You're so squeamish." He commented, pulling the pencil again to finish off his sketch, whatever it was. He was just drawing whatever came into his mind really.

Malik had designed a pretty intricate pattern for the pair of jeans he was making for someone on commission. They were also part of the project he was currently doing where he was focusing on needlework rather than using a sewing machine, since everything he'd done so far had used machines in order to save time. Bakura thought it was pretty crazy considering how stressed the Egyptian was getting with it, but he didn't mention it, lest the pretty boy bite off his head and stop giving him free coffee. He liked his free coffee, and his head for that matter.

"What are you working on then?" His friend asked him, peering over the edge of the sketchbook as much as he could from across the table.

"Nothing to do with class. I'm taking a break from that. Watercolours are driving me nuts." Bakura explained, biting the end of his pencil with his canines. "They keep screwing up the paper and it takes ages to sort out when I scan it."

"Why not just tape the paper down to the desk? Or use proper paper?" Malik suggested, picking up his needle again with another pout. The thread had come out of the end now too.

"Paper is too expensive, and taping it down doesn't help." Bakura explained, a small scowl appearing on his features, "I don't know why this guy wants me to use watercolours for this. My CG work is way better."

"Don't leave it too late like last time." Malik warned him, "Akefia was really pissed off with you when you missed that last person's deadline."

Bakura grinned to himself. Yes, he knew Akefia had been pissed off at him. But he'd shown it in a much more interesting way than the class had seen. "Bastard should've known I couldn't get it done in two days when I had about ten other things to do too. Akefia forgave me quick enough though."

They worked in silence for a while as Malik tried to work with his sore finger, now happily clotted and not bleeding all over his work, and not stab himself a second time while Bakura still sketched whatever it was he had in his head. It turned out the be the demon someone online had actually wanted from him. If it was good enough, he'd outline it and scan it before sending it as a preview and beginning to work on it in Copic markers. He figured he might as well use this for the order instead of something completely new.

Since coming to university he loved how easy it was to find art supplies to work on commissions. In fact it was openly encouraged to do commissions and all resources in the building could be used for it. Which often meant Bakura stole a lot of things without paying for them but he figured he had to fork out enough money to pay for the tuition so he might as well get everything he could out of it. He had the same mindset in high school and college too, although he'd had no decent excuse back then.

"Fuck, what time is it?" Malik suddenly asked, setting down his sewing and yanking his phone out of his pocket.

"Nearly five." Bakura answered before he could open it, going by the clock on the wall behind his fluffy friend.

"Shit, my shift starts at half past." Malik cursed, quickly darting up and scurrying out of the door to go to what Bakura knew would be the Fashion studio to put away his materials. His assumption was correct when the younger Egyptian came back empty handed. "We still on for drinks tonight, 'Kura?"

"If you can pry yourself away from Daisy Duke long enough to strike up a decent conversation with me, yes." Bakura looked up at him with a smirk, knowing Malik would be annoyed at the nickname he'd given the blonde's boyfriend.

"I'm sure I can, dude. Laters!" He waved farewell, rolling his eyes at the albino boy before rushing out of the double doors and leaving Bakura alone in the studio. He wasn't actually alone, he just sort of refused to talk to the other students in the room. They were decent people, but Bakura was anti-socil half of the time unless the person really took his interest, which the people in his class unfortunately didn't (with the exception of his tutor, but he was another story entirely).

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Hopefully I'll update this every Saturday, with the exception of the next couple of weeks since I'm on holiday.

R+R, it makes me feel loved :D


	2. Chapter 2: Send in the Boys

I'll most likely be posting the next chapter too either later on tonight or tomorrow morning, since my plan of updating weekly is gonna go to hell since I'm off to Sri Lanka for two weeks tomorrow. I'll only be back April 10, but hopefully I'll be doing a lot of writing on holiday so I won't fall behind with this. Hell, I've already written 7000 words of it XD

Thanks to the people who reviewed my last chapter :D I assure you, this will end up being Psychoshipping XD I'll just be going through a lot more pairings before we get to that however.

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 2 - _Send in the Boys_

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The idle chatter of the people nearby grew more and more annoying to the boy, so with a sigh ten minutes later Bakura packed up his stuff, put it away neatly on the desk assigned to him right in the corner of the studio and left the room, going down the same corridor Malik had no doubt raced down before. Unlike the blonde he only worked on weekends early in the morning. He got paid more for working the early shift, but he didn't work for long as he earned enough money on commissions from people, both online and in the university, to keep himself happy, while the money from his job usually went towards his clothes and art supplies. Sometimes he really loved his father for paying for his tuition fees and dorm room (although it did blow his earlier excuse for stealing art supplies right out of the window).

He was walking down the corridor lost in his own thoughts when someone happened to spot him walking past one of the open doors to the computer suite.

"Oi, Bakura!" A voice called out to him from that open doorway, firm and demanding, just like a teacher should sound. Stopping in his tracks and looking over his shoulder, he saw his tall and muscular tutor leaning against the door frame. "Coming over tonight?" Akefia asked with a leer, glasses resting atop his head holding his bangs out of his eyes. He must've been working for once.

"If I feel like it." Bakura replied, countering with a smug grin of his own, "Someone gave me a Tank of an assignment to do for next week on top of a bunch of commissions and I've gotta get it done if I wanna work this weekend."

"Ooo, don't be so grouchy, Baku-boy." Akefia grinned again, "You'll thank me when you're swimming in money."

"I'd never thank you for anything." The teen shot back, smirking again as he turned sharply and walked away, putting an extra sway in his hips as he walked, knowing the older man would be watching. The chains hanging from his belt made a clinking sound that made the movement all the more sensual. Akefia grinned at the sight before returning to whatever work he had been doing before he was distracted by the younger white-haired boy.

It was a strange relationship he had with his tutor. Ever since he started, the two had gotten on really well, teasing each other in more ways than one and basically connecting on a darker level almost instantly. Bakura was a boy slightly more mature for his age, quite anti-social and an insomniac. Akefia was a man slightly younger than his age, a relentless flirt and a lazy bastard. They just seemed to click in a way only near-opposites could.

One night after Fresher's Week, they had found themselves in bed together after maybe one too many drinks. They'd bumped into each other in the gay bar Paradox about three blocks away from the Art campus, and both had been surprised to see the other there. They had decided right from the start that it wasn't a serious relationship at all. They just happened to find each other incredibly attractive and also happened to like amazing sex. No one knew, however. If anyone did then it would spell the end of Akefia's career as a university tutor and while Bakura didn't really care about the white-haired man's job, he did care about the insanely hot sex they had, so he did his part and kept quiet. Sometimes he suspected Malik knew, but the boy was wise enough not to say anything.

Didn't stop the jabs about 'older men' though, Bakura thought with a slight scowl as he continued on his journey through the building, taking the long way around since he fancied the walk, but his thought was accompanied by a grin. Malik was alright sometimes. He took everything in his stride, and Bakura liked to think he'd become more open minded since they dated. Of course Bakura had turned out to be too kinky and strange for the pretty blonde and thus they had broken up, but Malik stayed 'loyal', as the albino liked to say, and they had remained friends. And now the Egyptian had gone and gotten himself an equally pretty acid-eyed boyfriend from the coffee shop he worked at. Bakura didn't mind Duke either. In fact, he was quite amused how nervous the boy was around him.

His ponderings were abruptly screeched to a halt when someone barreled straight into him, knocking both of them flying and scattering some of the contents of Bakura's bag on the floor. "Crap! Sorry Bakura! I was in a hurry!" A soft but frantic voice said to him, and Bakura turned to look at the short boy who had run into him, scowling with his red eyes before standing up properly and collecting the few things that had fallen out of his bag. The collision had also torn his strap a bit more too, and he made a mental note to steal some safety pins to fix it.

"You run into me a lot, Munchkin." Bakura teased, leaning down to pick up the tin of pencils that had thankfully not come open. "Some would think you're doing that on purpose."

Yugi snorted in response. "Yeah, I'm totally crazy for you." He quickly looked at his watch before cursing again. "Bugger, I've really gotta go. Sorry again Bakura!" He rushed off past the albino, practically prancing over the remaining scattered items. If there was one thing everyone knew about Yugi, it was that he was late for pretty much everything. That and he was also know for crashing into pretty much everything.

"Seems everyone's late for something today." Bakura muttered to himself, collecting the final three paintbrushes and continuing on his way while stuffing them back into his messenger bag. "What is this? Alice in Wonderland?"

"Sure, I'll be the Cheshire Cat and you can be the March Hare, Bakura." A voice suddenly whispered in his ear, forcing Bakura to yelp in surprise and turn around sharply.

He let out an annoyed sigh when he was it was just Malik's twin brother. "What the fuck 'Rik? Trying to give me a heart attack?" He growled, glaring at the spiky haired blonde, who only smirked in response.

"Oh, you'd have to have a heart for that." He chuckled, and Bakura just turned and continued on his way, the click of Marik's boots on the titled floor telling him that the Egyptian was following him. "What do you want, Ishtar?"

"I'm bored. I have an hour before I have to be in work and you just so happen to be the most entertaining thing I've seen so far." Marik shrugged, still grinning. "I was hanging out with the Smurf but he remembered he had work, so that plan went down the drain pretty quickly. We were having fun insulting that dick of a cousin of his." The cousin he'd mentioned was Yugi's older cousin Yami. It was no secret that he and Marik had dated. In fact, when Bakura first met the Ishtars they were still together. He'd never gotten the full story as to why they'd broken up, and he wasn't sure if he even wanted to.

"I'll never understand what you saw in that wanker." Bakura commented. He didn't like that guy either, if only because when they'd broken up he'd made a rather nasty comment about his and Malik's then-current relationship. He didn't even remember what it was now but it had really grated on him. He also currently noted how he had slowed down his pace since Marik joined him walking.

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R+R, it's love! XD


	3. Chapter 3: I Know Your Habits

Next chapter up a bit early. Tomorrow I'm heading off to Sri Lanka so I won't be updating until April 10. Then I'll keep up with my weekly updates :D Enjoy!

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**  
Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 3 - _I Know Your Habits_

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"I take it my weakling of a brother already left you." Marik responded, obviously trying to change the subject from one both of them knew he didn't like talking about.

There was something to be said about the Ishtar twins' relationship. Bakura had noticed while dating Malik that the elder brother was always insulting and borderline cruel to the boy, and yet they obviously cared for each other. He never got involved though. His own family life was strange enough that he didn't wanna be involved in someone else's, what with his younger brother being how he was and his father stressing about it. He liked his step-mother though. He almost looked up to her, more than his dad in any case.

"Yeah, had to fuck off to work." Bakura replied, shifting his shoulder as his bag strap cut into him slightly, even with the padding of his thick hoody. "Left me bored and in a room with fucktards I can't stand."

"Your fault for not having to rush off for a job." Marik snickered, cocking his head to the side absentmindedly and hearing it crack. "Lucky bastard only working weekends."

"Lucky bastard for working in a strip club." Bakura retorted, watching the tanned boy's smirk widen smugly.

"Yeah, my job is the best." The blonde laughed, clapping Bakura on the back, "Hey, you ever wanna get on the pole, just let me know, I'll work something out with the boss."

Bakura shrugged off Marik's hand. "Yeah, right. You'll never get me on that pole taking off my clothes for money."

"Oh, so you'd do it for free?" Marik laughed again and dodged as Bakura swiped at him. "I'm kidding man, jeez."

"You're always kidding." Bakura rolled his eyes, but grinned, "When are you ever bloody serious?"

Marik practically cackled, walking like a drunkard but Bakura knew that's just how he walked when he laughed at the same time (which was quite strange, but Bakura didn't care). "Why so serious, Bakura?" He giggled insanely, pinching the other's pale cheek and earning a smack on the head. "Woah, watch the hair!" He complained, reaching back and seeing if his spikes had been flattened.

"You should fucking watch it. Could take someone's eye out with those horns." Bakura told him, sticking his tongue out. Marik retorted with his own, flashing the metal piercings threaded through the slick muscle.

And then Bakura's phone beeped, buzzing in his pocket as he took it out and check it. It was was text message from Malik. "Oh look, it's your brother." Bakura told him, reading what the younger Ishtar twin had said. He felt Marik lean his chin on his shoulder as they walked outside.

"I bet he wants phone sex with you." The twin sniggered, still remaining on the albino's shoulder to read the message even as he tried to shove him off.

_I'll give you free coffee for a week if you go to Lucky Cat and bring me sushi_. The message said. Bakura smirked. He was a whore for coffee most of the time. "It looks like I have to leave you now. Your brother has made me an offer I just cannot refuse."

"You're such a whore." Marik chuckled, but let go of Bakura, "Have fun man. Hope that old lady manages to get in your pants this time." He teased, and Bakura cringed. The lady who owned the Lucky Cat take away was always telling him what a fine gentleman he was "except for those fangs o' yours, and all the black". It was quite annoying.

"Fucktard." Bakura called to him as they parted paths, Marik going in the direction of the dorms while the pale boy turned to go further into town. Marik just flipped him off in response over his shoulder as he walked away.

Walking along the almost silent road into town, Bakura cursed himself for forgetting to charge his iPod the night before. He hated silence like this, and it also gave him an excuse to pretend to not hear the people walking the streets begging for money for some charity, or other such crap that just plain annoyed him. It made the journey into town and to the takeaway a lot longer in his mind when he didn't have rock music blasting out his ear drums and twice as boring. Instead he had to entertain himself with ideas for more illustrations. One of the English students was writing a book and had asked him to design the cover for her, so with the what information about it he could remember, Bakura amused himself for a while attempting to think of some decent ideas for it.

He still hadn't come up with any he remotely liked by the time he'd reached the Lucky Cat, with the giant lucky cat statue in the window waving happily at the customers. Sometimes he wanted to smash it, especially when it was sunny and the gold paint reflected the rays of light into his eyes when he walked in, but he hated the place enough without the old bag behind the counter chasing him about the destruction of her beloved statue. And said old bag was currently giving him a friendly and somewhat creepy smile from her place by the till. Bakura rolled his eyes, trying not to let his skin crawl.

"What would you like, young man?" The lady greeted with another smile. Bakura inwardly cringed. He really didn't like old people. They were much more fun when they fell down the stairs.

"Sushi special 4, Malik Ishtar's tab." Bakura told her, purposefully not saying please and making it as short as possible, since his 'manners' were what had latched the lady onto him in the first place. He put 'manners' in air quotes because the most he had said was 'please' and 'thank you', and that was only by habit thanks to his brother Ryou correcting him so often.

"Coming right up, sweetheart." The old lady beamed, shuffling behind the counter to get his order. She had a soft Liverpool accent, which Bakura had long ago decided was the most annoying accent in the world, after Jordies of course. "That'll be £3.50 on his tab then." She handed him a cardboard box with a clear plastic lid and bid him farewell, the albino not returning the sentiments as he practically ran out of the door with as much dignity as he could muster.

Brucciani's, where Malik worked, was two blocks away from the Asian takeaway, but Bakura walked it as quick as he could since he didn't want to be carrying out the damn box of sushi for long. The plastic lid was starting to dig into his arm. Upon reaching the café he noticed the sign filled with offers was on the floor, which he kicked out of the way as he went in. It was only around half past five in the afternoon, meaning the place was very quiet, as people were between their daily activities and going out for the evening.

Bakura noticed Malik right away cleaning the tables near the back by the counter. "Pretty boy, got your food!" He called out to him, and when the younger Egyptian twin turned to look at him he had a giant grin on his face.

"Oh thank fuck, you're amazing." Malik gushed, dropping the cloth on the table and making his way over to him. "I take it you put it on my tab though."

"Of course, I'm not paying for your food." Bakura told him, smirking, handing him the box at the same time.

"And yet I pay for your coffee." Malik retorted, shaking his head but smiling all the same as he took his delicious food off of his friend. "Come on then, I'll make you some."

"Where's Daisy Duke?" Bakura asked, following the blonde but being shoved away whne he tried to step behind the counter, where the sushi had been left while they got their drinks.

"Will you ever stop calling him that?" Malik questioned, raising an eyebrow while he grabbed one of the black mugs to make Bakura his usual vanilla mocha latte.

"He only had himself to blame. He was the one wearing denim cut-offs during Fresher's Week." The pale teen shot back, grinning at the memory of Duke dancing around in hot-pants and cowboy boots to 'These Boots Are Made For Walking'. "He does have a nice ass."

"And that ass is mine, remember?" Malik warned him, although he needn't have. He knew Bakura wouldn't steal his boyfriend from him. In the boy's own words, 'he's far too damn girly'.

"Yeah yeah." Bakura waved him off but stopped when Malik handed him the dark mug. They moved to one of the freshly cleaned tables right next to the counter. "Ah, sweet caffeine." Bakura sighed in content after taking a large gulp

"I don't know how you drink that crap." Malik wondered out loud, sitting across from him with a bottle of Coke and his sushi. "Vanilla does not go in coffee, it goes in ice cream and cakes."

"You're too vanilla for my liking." Bakura responded, taking another long sip of the hot drink, burning his tongue slightly but not caring.

"Which is why we broke up." Malik said, effectively ending the conversation by taking an over-exaggerated bite out of the piece of sushi he'd picked up.

Bakura just smirked to himself, happily leaning back in his seat, watching the other two workers there go about their duties nearby. One of them he knew, sort of. Duke had dated her before he had had gone out with Malik. She was sweet, but too sweet for Bakura. Way too sweet. The annoying kind of sweet where he wanted to smash her face into the nearest brick wall. He couldn't even remember her name. Hope? Faith? He'd have to ask when he cared enough. She left him alone mostly, and only spoke to him when it involved Malik.

"Seen Marik anywhere today?" Malik suddenly asked through a mouthful of rice and fish.

"Was with him before you demanded sushi." Bakura told him, leaning over to grab one of the rolls for himself and shoving it in his mouth, much to the blonde's protest. "Delivery boy's tip." He spoke with his mouthful before sticking his rice-covered tongue out at him.

"You're disgusting." Malik complained, but it wasn't harsh. It never was.

"You dated me." Bakura retorted with a grin, lip-rings clinking against the mug as he took another drink.

"That was a huge mistake." The Egyptian said, smiling to show he was joking. "Mm, thanks for bringing food. Sandra isn't giving me a long enough break today for me to grab my own."

"I figured as much. Can I go now or does his Highness require more services of me?" Bakura stood, draining the last of his coffee while bowing dramatically.

"You are free to go, my loyal servant." Malik laughed as he flicked rice at the albino teen, who flicked a sweet wrapper from his pocket at him in response.

"Call me that again and I'll whip your ass." Bakura said over he shoulder as he began to walk out.

"Nah, not into that kinky shit you are." Malik replied, raising an eyebrow and waving farewell to his friend.

"That's not what you said last time." Bakura taunted, grinning at the Egyptian twin as he finally left the cafe.

Fighting the urge to go out and spend money he currently didn't really have, the pale boy decided to head back to the dorms instead before he would head out to Akefia's. Even though he'd implied he might not go, both of the white haired males knew that Bakura would pretty much always take Akefia up on his offer unless he was incredibly busy. The albino put it down to sheer boredom half of the time, but the other percentage was due to a not-so unknown factor that he didn't really want to think about.

Feeling his legs begin to ache, Bakura sighed heavily to himself. Fuck it, he was catching the bus back to the dorms.

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R+R, it keeps the trees alive!


	4. Chapter 4: Do I Make You Sweat?

Back from holiday, and here's the next chapter :D Back to weekly updates again now.

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 4 - _Do I Make You Sweat?_

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Akefia sat bored out of his mind in a meeting of the art and design tutors, surrounded by people he could barely tolerate walking past in the corridors let alone being forced into a room with them. Well, maybe there were a couple he could stand, but not many. In fact, probably only one of them, who he noticed was doodling in the notebook he was supposedly writing down the speaker's presentation in. The white haired man had no idea what the speaker was saying either. He'd tuned out quite quickly. He assumed it was another update about the systems and other technological crap he either already knew about or didn't care about.

"Akefia." His attention was gained when the Japanese man across the table spoke up. Looking around the tanned man saw people gathering their stuff to leave. "Lose your mind again?" The blue eyed brunette smirked.

"Oh I never had it, Set'. You know that." Akefia winked, collecting his own notebook and making his way out. He didn't want to delay too long, as he had a hot date with his favourite student, Bakura. Maybe not exactly a date, and the younger male hadn't even said he was coming, but he knew Bakura and knew to expect him around seven p.m that night. He didn't know why it was seven p.m but it tended to be around that time, rarely ever a significant amount earlier or later.

"What's the grin on your face for?" The brunette, Seto, walked beside him as he left.

"Oh, didn't even realise I was grinning." The muscular man admitted. "Just thinking about my plans for tonight. Total relaxation."

"Heh, wish I could say the same thing but I've got to do work for Aeria Games this weekend." Seto explained to him with his own small smile. "Good pay but an annoying about of work for a game that's pretty much free."

"Which one is it? The cute one or the angsty one?" Akefia asked, thinking back to the Aeria Games he could remember, which weren't that many. He didn't think too much of online games.

"There's more than just those two, idiot." Seto said almost fondly. "But I'm doing work for MegaTen. They need a few server bugs sorting out and a bunch of new items installed."

"Ah, wouldn't have a clue about that." Akefia admitted, turning down the corridor towards the car park and his Lexus SC.

"I often wonder how you write so damn much and yet have no clue about computers at all." The brunette shook his head in disbelief.

"It's called Word. The only thing I really need." Akefia winked at him before turning to go their separate ways, Seto to go back to his office while the tanned mixed-race man opened his car from ten feet away and got in, throwing his stuff onto the seat beside him while starting up the engine.

While he maneuvered around the car park, Akefia watched Seto walk across the courtyard nearby to get back into the main building. He smirked as he revved as he drove past, making the blue-eyed Japanese man jump slightly before glaring at him when he noticed who it was. The man gave him the finger as Akefia sped off, screeching around the corner at an almost illegal speed. He just wanted to get home and chill before Bakura came knocking.

The man drove in silence to his apartment, which was actually a fair distance away from the university itself but he liked the peace and quiet. It was on the edge of the main town, where rows of houses gave way to luxury apartments surrounding large open fields. Akefia often wondered why'd they had built such large apartments outside of the city, but he didn't really question it. There were only three buildings, with five floors each and two apartments to each floor. His own dwelling was on the top floor of the building closest to the park, overlooking the nearby river.

He pulled his car into the car park, parking right by the door since he was feeling lazy for once. He grabbed his bags, stopping at the trunk of his car to pick up a couple more that needed to be moved into his apartment and had been there for at least a week. "One of these days I'll be bothered to do things." Akefia muttered to himself, flashing his key over the panel by the front door while juggling all three bags, happy when the glass doors swung open automatically with a soft buzz.

He idly greeted one of the other tenants as she passed him, not really having any meaning behind his words and only wanting to get to his apartment to have a shower before Bakura arrived. Or maybe he'd pull the 'just out of the shower' trick again. When he answered the door dripping wet in nothing but a towel, Bakura was usually on him like a dog to a bone. Akefia smirked at the thought. Yes, he'd play that trick tonight, just to see how long it took for Bakura to pounce him. His longest record was ten minutes, with the shortest being only thirty seconds. It all depended on the young man's mood. However sometimes it was awkward to play that trick, since most visitors needed to call from downstairs to open the door. The white haired man just hoped that once again his student could just slip passed as someone was going out. Sometimes Bakura even just waited for someone to open the door, rather than call up. Again, it all depended on his mood.

Akefia's thoughts were interrupted as the elevator dinged, telling him he was on his floor. He strode over to his door the moment the silver metal slid open, jamming his key into the lock and dumping his bags just inside the doorway. He'd sort them out later, since nothing was of vital importance. He checked the clock on the wall, which read 17:56 in bright neon red numbers next to a large painting of a golden dragon. He had another hour to kill yet, so Akefia chose to devour the leftovers in the fridge before having the last of the coffee (which he needed to make a note of to get more) and then heading off to have a shower.

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R+R, as usual, 'cause it's love and keeps me updating :3


	5. Chapter 5: Say It Like You Mean It

I didn't think I'd have enough written to post the new chapter up this early but I do, so here it is :D The rating will go up as of the next chapter, since as I'm pretty sure you can tell, there's smut coming up XD

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Halfway to Nowhere

**Chapter 5** - _Say It Like You Mean It_

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Back at the dorms, Bakura was sat at his desk, half-heartedly practicing using his new graphics tablet and getting frustrated when things went a little wrong. He'd play with it for another ten minutes or so before getting fed up and surfing the internet instead. He knew he should really crack on with getting better with the tablet, but the albino just couldn't find the motivation to do so. Then again, he never could. Throwing the pen down in frustration, Bakura slumped back in his seat and stared at the ceiling, currently littered with stickers and various other things he'd decided to stick up there, including a couple of knives from his collection (half of which was back at home under the watchful eye of his little brother).

Sometimes he wondered why he was in his strange relationship with Akefia, his teacher no less. Bakura liked to think he had the most open mind of anyone he knew, but occasionally he didn't think that was necessarily a good thing. Sure, it meant that he wasn't too freaked out when his younger sibling came out to him, but that made for some real awkwardness between the two of them and their father, who was slowly accepting it but had a big misunderstanding of the whole situation. Bakura didn't even really like thinking about the specifics in his mind. He just called it 'The Weird Family Situation' in his head. Another reason he didn't like to get involved in the Ishtars' family business. He had too much trouble with his own.

Which reminded him, his father wanted all three of them to go to a family therapy session when he next came home. Bollocks. He didn't want to go to that. Maybe he could avoid going home at Christmas.

The pale teen shook his head to rid himself of his confusing thoughts. It was better to concentrate on his work than what was happening at home. It was annoying enough that his brother, Ryou, came to visit him nearly every weekend, but at least the kid never stayed overnight, even though it was a two hour drive back home. It was sweet really, and it wasn't as if he hated Ryou, but sometimes the visits were quite inconvenient. Bakura decided to shut off his laptop, pack away his art equipment (albeit a bit messily) and focus on having a shower then going out to see his teacher-slash-fuck-buddy.

Stepping under the hot shower after ridding himself of his boxers and t-shirt, he silently thanked Yaten, his father, for being kind enough to pay for the 'deluxe' dorm, which had an en-suite shower and bath instead of having to share with five other people. Everyone on this floor had an en-suite, and he found that they all seemed to be much more pleasant than others he knew from other dorms.

For some reason, Malik was sat on his bed when he stepped out of the bathroom, grey towel around his waist and dripping water all over the floor. "What the fuck are you doing here?" Bakura asked, not really minding he was pretty much walking around naked with the other boy there, who he noticed had a slight blush on his face.

"Finished work early but Duke was busy. Thought I'd pay you a visit." Malik explained, averting his eyes to a gory horror movie poster on the wall instead as Bakura rummaged around in his drawers for fresh clothes.

"Can't stay long. I'm going out." Bakura said bluntly, toweling himself dry with the one around his shoulders before dropping the one around his waist and pulling on a pair of black boxers. He knew Malik's eyes would still be firmly planted on the wall. Plus they'd slept together before, so it wasn't as if he hadn't seen him naked. Bakura smirked. Malik had blushed just as much back then too.

"Where are you going?" Malik asked, not really interested but trying to divert attention from the fact Bakura was half naked behind his back. He already knew where Bakura was going. The albino was pretty much a recluse and only went out if Malik or someone else dragged him out, or to see Akefia.

"Where do you think, idiot?" Bakura snapped, yanking on a skull patterned shirt to match the red and black bondage pants he wore. He sat on the bed next to Malik to pull on his Doc Martin boots. His usual choker was already in place. "Akefia invited me over."

"Y'know, if this was America, this would be improving your grades." Malik smirked, giggling when Bakura glared at him.

"If we were in America, I wouldn't be sleeping with the obese balding professors to get higher grades." The white haired boy cringed, standing to fix his damp hair in the mirror. "Besides, my grades are decent enough already."

"You only keep them up so your dad will keep paying for your room and classes." Malik accused, twisting a lock of blonde hair around his finger idly. "If you had to pay for everything yourself, you'd be bottom of the barrel."

"Bottom of the barrel? Where the fuck did you learn to speak English?" Bakura raised an eyebrow, looking at the boy in the mirror. "And the only reason I'm actually in university is 'cause my dad pays for it. I'd just be finding work on my own otherwise."

Malik sighed, "I know. Sometimes I'm kinda thankful for that. You make my life more interesting."

Bakura froze, his hands in his hair, turning around slowly to face his friend. "Y'know, if I was anyone else, I'd expect a love confession after that."

It was Malik's turn to cringe. "Fuck no! We broke up for a damn reason."

"Don't remind me. Besides the amazing sex, I dunno why I stuck with you." Bakura was back facing the mirror, smirking at Malik to show he wasn't really serious. He didn't want a pissed off Egyptian on his ass. Not tonight anyway. He looked up when he was done to check the time. Half past six. He had better get moving. "Right, get your skinny ass out of my room, I'm leaving."

"Fine fine. Just tell me, is Akefia white down there too?" Malik grinned cheekily before Bakura bodily removed him from his room. "Ok ok! No need to be so rough!"

"That's not what you said when we were dating." Bakura smirked, kicking Malik down the corridor while he locked his room. He could hear the blonde's laughter as he walked out of the door, watching him retreat to his own room out of the corner of his eye. Forget what he had said before about Malik having a feeling about his relationship with his teacher, the bastard knew full well what he did and constantly teased him about it.

The evening air was cold and Bakura regretted not bringing his leather jacket instead of just his hoody (which he really loved, it said 'KILL' in bloody red letters on the front). He cursed British weather under his breath but also knew that if he was anywhere warmer and sunnier he would probably turn into a pile of ash, due to his ghostly pale skin. It was bad enough in summer, and they were in the north of England, infamous for it's rainy days and cloudy skies. It sucked to be an albino, even if it did give him cool red eyes. Still cursing, he pulled his hood up and zipped it up as far as it could go, shoving his hands into the pockets and flicking on his iPod, thankful he remembered to charge it while he was in the shower.

Disturbed screamed happily in his ears, making the bus ride to Akefia's apartment feel shorter and also giving people a reason not to talk to him. After all, he had the volume up loud enough so that his fellow passengers clearly heard 'I wanna get psycho, run you little bitch', and thus made sure they stayed away from him. He grinned evilly to himself most of the way there. He loved scaring the 'normal' people around him, if there was such a thing as normal.

Even with getting off at the closest bus stop to Akefia's apartment, Bakura still had quite a way to walk. That was the trouble in living in a town in the middle of the countryside, everything was very spaced out and out of the way most of the time. Disturbed had switched to Rammestein, growling 'Let me see you stripped' in his ear, almost forcing him to walk faster to the beat of the guitars. He mouthed the lyrics while he approached the clean-cut white and brick apartment complex that his teacher lived in. He darted forwards to catch the door off someone who was coming out, not wanting to call up to the man to get in. He hated doing that.

He switched off his iPod when he neared the black door of Akefia's apartment, slipping the Skullcandy headphones around his neck before knocking loudly on the lacquered wood. The rings he wore scratched the paint slightly and he picked it off the metal while he listened to Akefia moving around inside. When the door opened Bakura's eyes widened slightly before settling back to their usual size. Inwardly he grinned. Akefia had played the shower trick again.

"You have such bad timing." Akefia smirked, holding the towel around his waist and letting his hair drip everywhere. "Get in. It's freezing." He left the doorway and padded back to the bedroom, letting Bakura follow him after he shut the door.

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Please R+R, it motivates me XD

Also updates may falter at some point in the future as my exams are coming up so I won't have as much time or inspiration to write that much.


	6. Chapter 6: Need It Like Oxygen

I'm just thinking, are these chapters too short? I'm trying to space it out so I have stuff to post every week. The chapters will get longer I assure you, I'm just trying to set things up at the beginning :D

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 6 - _Need It Like Oxygen_

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In the hallway, the albino hung up his jacket and headphones, kicking off his loosely tied boots before following his teacher's wet footprints on the laminate floor. Bakura complained often that the floor needed a carpet, since wood was too cold on bare feet. Akefia always shrugged and told him that he didn't have to come around if he hated it that much. And of course Bakura never answered back. They both knew he wouldn't stop coming over; a thought that neither of them elaborated further on.

In the bedroom, fitted out with a king-size bed covered with luxurious pillows and warm covers, Akefia was still half-naked, walking around in nothing but a skimpy towel which barely did anything to cover him up, revealing his ass whenever he bent over. Bakura assumed that was part of his plan. It was an unspoken bet as to how long Bakura could last before jumping him when he played this particular trick. The younger male often thought it was all to do with the mood he was in, and today he was in the mood to play. Watching Akefia wander around his room, Bakura flopped back on the bed, hands behind his head and a flirty smile on his lips. He played with his lip-rings as the tanned man walked around, doing whatever he was supposed to be doing, which seemed to not be getting dressed, but tidying away various bits of work that involved bending over and revealing his ass slightly.

Akefia knew the game Bakura wanted to play, and was happy to take part as long as they ended up tangled in the sheets, or wherever else they chose to end up. Last time it was up against the wardrobe. Plus, he actually did need to tidy away the various bits and pieces of work he had scattered around the desks and cabinets of his room. It was a win-win situation really. He'd get sex and a tidy room. The only other way that was possible would be if he managed to coerce Bakura into playing French Maid, but the boy was far too stubborn to even think about being so submissive. It wouldn't stop Akefia's runaway imagination, however.

The albino watched quite contently from the comfort of the bed, nibbling teasingly on his lip-rings in the way that drove his teacher crazy. He'd often get whapped on the head with a ruler or pencil when he did it too much during class. He couldn't help it, as it had been a habit ever since he'd had them pierced. It was the same with the gauges in his ears; he couldn't stop playing with them. Although Akefia had to admit that even though he'd expect the flesh to be tough and insensitive due to scar tissue, or what he assumed would be anyway, the pierced flesh was actually more sensitive than any other part of the boy's body. It made things a hell of a lot more exciting considering how many piercings the boy had, including two on the back of his neck and his navel.

Bakura was happy to sit back and continue watching his older teacher, but he was getting twitchy. Akefia still had his back turned to him, the towel slowly coming undone around his slender hips. The man was quite muscular, but in a sexy, toned kind of way, rather than big and beefy. Quite frankly, Bakura was freaked out by men with big muscles, and he was glad Akefia never strayed into that category. He kept on watching him. The white-haired man stretched up to place some thick books on the shelf above the desk, making the towel slip down that little bit more, revealing the cleft of that sexy ass Bakura loved to grope during class when no one was looking.

Akefia checked the clock. Not bad, the kid had lasted five minutes, but by the feeling of the cloth around his waist falling down bit by bit, he knew that before it dropped the boy would have ripped it off and it would lay on the floor in a forgotten heap, soon to be joined by the dark clothes the albino wore. He was right, and the last thing he put away was a thick hardback book before Bakura spun him around and pressed him against the desk to kiss him harshly, teeth nipping at his lower lip. Like he had expected, the towel was ripped off and his ass groped just as hard as he was kissed, Bakura's slender fingers kneading the toned flesh. The taller man liked it when he tried to take charge, and let him think he had control until he could turn the tables. For now, Akefia cupped the back of Bakura's head, running his fingers through his hair in a way he knew would make the younger boy purr, which it did and he could feel the vibrations in his mouth and on his tongue.

With Bakura distracted, Akefia pushed back and slowly maneuvered them towards the bed, letting Bakura fall back onto the matress when the backs of his knees hit the edge. The albino landed with an annoyed 'oof!' of indignation but it was quickly silenced as Akefia slinked over him, completely naked, like a white haired lion. The teacher leaned down and captured Bakura's lips once again, letting the kid wrap his arms around his neck, and a leg around his waist, to draw him closer. The feeling of the rough denim against his bare flesh was simply amazing, but it did remind him that the boy below him was still fully clothed.

Without breaking the kiss, Akefia trailed his hands down Bakura's chest, unbuttoning the skull-patterned shirt along the way. Pulling him up by the lapels of the shirt, he shoved it down Bakura's shoulders and forced him to shrug it off, which the boy did quite willingly. The red-eyed teen rolled his shoulders and unhooked his arms from Akefia's shoulders, and the shirt was tossed to the side, joining the towel on the floor. Next, one of Akefia's surprisingly soft hands delved down to the front of his pants, cupping the growing bulge and forcing Bakura to moan and let go of his lips to gasp. He caught himself though, realising how submissive he sounded, and responded by forcefully biting Akefia's shoulder, forcing an equally lustful growl out of the older man, who squeezed the bulge in his pants harder.

Akefia's free hand was brought down and Bakura's belt was unfastened, the metal clinking as the zipper and button joined it. The other slipped into his black boxers and fondled what he found inside, making Bakura arch into his touch and bite down harder on the shoulder he held. Bakura's arms found their way around his neck again, but one hand stroked down Akefia's ribs, twisting a nipple along the way before trailing down and stroking the dagger tattooed on his hip. Bakura himself had similar ones one his own, only his were guns on both hips rather than a simple dagger on one. He said simple, but it was quite elaborate and sexy when he thought about it.

In his pocket, Bakura's phone suddenly rang, calling out 'Dude looks like a lady!', effectively stalling the mood. Bakura groaned, knowing who was calling simply by the ringtone. He groaned, still biting on Akefia's tanned shoulder. He let go and pushed his teacher away, getting an annoyed look from the older man. "Just ignore it, 'Kura." He purred, nibbling on the pale teen's ear and the gauge that stretched it.

"Can't." Bakura groaned, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the offending technology. "What's up, Ry'? I'm busy."  


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R+R, as always XD Because I love you and you love me, and we should all go and kill Yami!


	7. Chapter 7: You'd Be Surprised

I promise after this chapter, the next few will be longer. This was just giving me chance to pace myself and figure out where things were going. Because while i have a number of plans I have no idea how to get to them XD

Also, thanks to everyone who keeps reviewing. It means a lot to me, guys!

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 7 - _You'd Be Surprised_

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A sob was his reply before his brother spoke. "S-sorry, Bakura. I-I j-just needed to talk t-to you." Bakura rolled his eyes, knowing that his younger sibling had to have been really upset to call him. Despite what their father and most of his friends thought, Ryou wasn't a crybaby, nor did he call him up very often. Sure, he came to visit nearly every weekend, but calling him up was a different issue altogether.

"What happened this time?" Bakura asked, shuffling to sit on the edge of the bed with his back to Akefia.

"I-It do-doesn't matter if you're b-busy." The younger one hiccuped.

The albino sighed, feeling Akefia sit behind him and put his legs on either side of his. "Look, you're crying. You're clearly upset and you don't call me unless something is really wrong. Talk to me, kid."

"Y'know that girl I u-used to be friends with? Like, best friends?" Ryou started, and Bakura nodded even though he couldn't see it. "I h-haven't really ta-talked to h-her since we started college. But I bumped into her yesterday and she ha-had a real go at me, s-saying I was a digusting fr-reak. That I was wr-rong. And her friend was with her t-too, and she joined in. The-en today some pe-people in my class who didn't know came over and st-started asking all these questions and stuff. A-and now pu-retty much the entire year know, and I've been getting utter sh-shite for it."

Bakura growled low in his throat, shrugging off Akefia's attempts to nibble on his neck. "God-damn it, I knew it wasn't a good idea to send you to a college linked to our high school. Something like this was bound to happen sooner or later." He sighed heavily, dropping his head into his hand. "Right, you're still coming over at the weekend, right?"

"Y-yeah." Ryou replied, swallowing loudly and sniffing away his tears. "Dad is lending me his c-car."

"Good, we can chill out in my room and you can vent your frustrations on my games. Can take you to Marik's club, if you want." The albino suggested, glaring at the tanned arm that snaked around his waist but not bothering to remove it. Ryou's cry for help had effectively killed the mood for him.

"Doesn't he work at a strip club?" He could tell the boy was slowly ceasing his crying now.

"Yup, we can go watch half naked people dance around poles and get drunk." Bakura grinned to himself. "If I bribe Marik he'll give us drinks for free."

"Bribe him with what?" Ryou giggled slightly, but it sounded slightly broken.

"Porn, the usual. And besides, he owes me for pretending to be his doctor that time he wanted to drag Mai out on a date." Bakura chuckled as he lent back against Akefia, noticing the mood had died for him as well.

"Heh, he has a one track mind." His brother replied, sniffling a little but he was sounding better.

"Eh, wouldn't say one track, but he's easy enough to please." Bakura smirked, his mind sniggering at the double entendre.

"Hm, thanks Bakura." Ryou sounded happier now, to Bakura's relief.

"No problem, kid. You're my little brother, I'm supposed to look out for you and shit." Bakura rolled his eyes, trying not to sound too caring lest he die from the sugar overdose.

"Thanks. I'll let you get back to what you were doing now. Laters." Ryou said, and Bakura could hear him shuffling around.

"More like who I was doing." Bakura muttered to himself, but said louder, "'Kay, Ry'. See you at the weekend." He took the phone away from his ear and ended the call.

There was silence between them for a moment or two that hung slightly awkwardly in the air before Akefia spoke. "Your brother really knows how to kill the mood."

"Yup, he can't help it though. Poor bastard was crying his heart out." Bakura said, standing up to get his t-shirt back. With his brain now firmly back in his head instead of in his pants he didn't feel like having any sort of bedroom antics with his teacher.

"Awh, I didn't know you were so soft." Akefia smirked, picking up a pair of pants he had thrown to the floor earlier in the day.

"Don't push it, old man." Bakura looked over his shoulder as he pulled his shirt on, leaving it open as he left the room. In the lounge, Akefia's dog was snoozing happily on the sofa. Bakura sat down next to it by its head, which was lifted and swiftly whumped on his thigh. He scratched the animal behind its ears as he saw Akefia walk out of his room and head to the kitchen, which was only behind a breakfast bar but was still pretty large.

The fridge opened and shut with a clink of bottles and Akefia was once again moving, this time coming to sit next to Bakura by shoving Anubis onto the floor. "Meanie." Bakura said idly as the TV was switched on and a beer was handed to him.-

"He'll get over it." Akefia said, and Anubis indeed seemed to get over it and climbed back onto the sofa, this time leaning his head on Akefia's leg.

This kind of silence was more comfortable than before, both just sitting watching the random show on TV about some sort of cops, drinking cold beers that Bakura didn't even really like but drank anyway because hey, alcohol was still alcohol. He loved and hated moments like this between him and Akefia. Loved them because they were comfortable and trouble-free half the time, but he hated them because they gave him time to think, and he didn't like thinking about where their relationship was going because quite frankly they didn't have a relationship and this was only satisfying their mutual needs until something or someone better came along. Yeah, that was it.

They sat watching TV for a good couple of hours, laughing and joking a few times and making idle conversation until Bakura realised how late it was and that he needed to get back to his dorms before the buses finished. And just his look, when he checked the clock, the next one would be for half an hour as the night schedule had now begun.

"Bugger." Bakura really couldn't be bothered waiting that long for a damn bus and he really wanted to get back to his room.

"I'll drive you, kid." Akefia offered, even though it sounded more like a command. Bakura didn't complain as he gathered his things and gave Anubis and scratch behind the ears as a farewell.

Akefia didn't even bother about putting a shirt on, or even shoes, as they walked out of the door and down to the gravelly carpark. Bakura didn't say anything, knowing better than to comment on Akefia's dislike of clothing. He prefered to walk around shirtless or completely naked, which is why the apartment was always so warm. Something about being used to warm climates or something like that, he couldn't remember.

The drive was silent until they reached the dorms, where Bakura simply said goodbye as he clambered out, but Akefia called to him, "Don't forget that bloody assignment tomorrow." He smirked, watching the door slam and Bakura give him the finger before walking away from the car. The tanned man just shook his head and drove off, nearly running over a couple of students in the process.

"Assignment my ass." Bakura muttered to himself, scanning his ID card to get into the building. "I did that thing last week and he knows it."

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R+R! It keeps me motivated XD And you'll get cybercookies.


	8. Chapter 8: Jack of all Trades

Finally moving away from Bakura this chapter :D Say hello to Marik.

Once again thank you to the people who constantly review. It really does motivate me to keep going with this fic :D

Also a small notice. Updates may not be on time for the next few weeks. It's exam time in college -__- So I have to put my studies first.

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 8 - _Jack of all Trades_

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_Sweet Paradise_ was originally named simply _Paradise _until a new owner took over. The new owner had decided to make the club more gay friendly, due to it being on the edge of the ever-expanding gay district of the city. No one knew why it was 'Sweet' Paradise, but they didn't question it. Old customers of middle-aged and scruffy-looking men slowly filtered out and became a variety of men and women and everything in and out of the spectrum. Scantily-clad girls on stage were joined by pretty boys and gorgeous men, as well as a drag act every first and third Friday of every month (except if it was on Christmas, then it was moved to Boxing Day instead).

One of the reasons Marik adored his job was the multitude of people that he saw. From the fabulous to the bears, the dykes to the queens, the obviously straight to the clearly gay, he flirted with everyone equally, offering drinks to the really pretty ones (which was rare, as he was honestly quite picky when it came down to things), and persuading people to try the karaoke or amateur stripper night. The change of owners had done the place good, not that the Egyptian had seen it before it had been revamped.

Saturday was one of their busiest nights, with the majority of people out to have a good time, girls and guys alike. As such, anyone who worked the bar on Saturday night as well as pulling a few hours during the week got paid a quarter more than usual. People who only worked weekends got a bit more for their hourly wage, but not as much as the others. It was the manager's way of showing how much he liked the hard workers, which Marik thought was quite fair, considering how useless some of the weekend staff where. That was why a lot of the time the more frequent workers sent them around collecting glasses.

Marik had begun his job around two months before he started university. Having known exactly where he'd wanted to go, and being a foreign student, the blonde, along with his twin brother, had decided to get there early and settle in. They'd rented a cheap apartment to stay in while they'd waited for the student accommodation to become available. They'd grown used to the city pretty quickly, and, on their first week of term, had directed a lot of people around to various clubs and had told them how long it would take to walk from one place to another. Their popularity had decreased, however, when everyone grew to be slightly creeped out by the Ishtar twins, with a good reason. Marik was pretty open about his psychotic tendencies, while Malik had a very short temper and could snap at anyone for any reason if he didn't like them. It was one reason why, when they did eventually make friends, they stuck to them like glue.

So far, the group of people they could call friends included Bakura and Duke (whom they knew thanks to Malik dating them both), Yugi (who was in Marik's Photography classes), and Mai (thanks to Marik dating her too). Of course, they had more acquaintances, but those were few and far between, resulting in acknowledging them in the street or class but nothing more. They were both unlikely to trust many people, mostly due to their rather dark and disturbing past, but they survived thanks to the power of sibling love, both of each other and of their older sister Isis and sort-of older brother Rishid.

It was on these thoughts Marik dwelled as he was cleaning the bar ready for the evening. While the place was open during the day, they closed it around 5pm in order to set up and switch things around for the club to open at 8pm, which would then carry on until 5am when the cycle would be repeated and thus the club would close in order to be ready for re-opening at 8am. Marik, luckily, only worked from four until midnight from Friday to Monday, but for the rest of the week he worked around his classes, so he often worked later but for less hours. It was pretty good money, and he got some huge tips from the ones who thought he was pretty/hot/handsome/fuckable (the description depended on who he was flirting with, of course).

Tonight was a little bit special though, the blonde Egyptian thought with a grin. Not only was Bakura stepping out of the cave he called a room willingly, but he was also bringing along his younger brother, whom both he and his twin had never met before. From the albino's description, Ryou was a shy and slightly paranoid young boy who would probably blush tomato red on the first sight of the strippers on stage, which Marik would be sure to get a good laugh at and possibly photos. He loved watching the shy young virgins squirm.

The blonde walked into the club with a bit of a spring in his step. He was a little later arriving than usual, but that was only because he had gotten caught up in editing his last photoshoot and hadn't realised what time it was. As long as he gave his boss an academic reason why he was late, he was usually let off. Although he never really abused those privileges, just because at some point he really would need time off for his studies and exams.

"Hey Marik." The boy was greeted at the bar by one of their more popular workers, Mai. He'd dated the woman in the past, but it hadn't worked out. There was a line that had to be drawn when it came to dating co-workers. Especially co-workers who happened to be strippers.

"Hey, gorgeous." Marik greeted, pecking the woman on the cheek before hopping over the counter in the way he was always told not to do. "You're in early."

Mai shrugged, blonde hair bouncing around her shoulders. "I had nothing better to do so I thought I'd come in and chill out for a while."

"You just wanna flirt with early customers and have their jaws drop when they see you on stage." Marik teased, dropping his bag to the floor and pulling off his t-shirt to replace it with the black shirt he had to wear for work. It was plain black with the bar's logo on the pocket and across the shoulders on the back.

"I still cringe whenever I see your back." Mai told him, as she did every time she saw him take off his shirt.

"I happen to like my scars." Marik grinned at her.

"Scars are fine, it's purposefully inflicted ones like that which I just don't get." The blonde woman explained, her lips curled in a wince.

The younger male just shrugged, buttoning up the shirt. "Scarification is pretty cool to me."

"At least it's a decent design, not like that damn game controller I've seen someone have." Mai sipped at the lemonade in front of her. Marik guessed one of his fellow bartenders had gotten her that while everyone was setting up.

"Yeah, you have to draw a line somewhere." Marik said. He picked up his bag and made to go into the storage room that lead out from the bar. "I'll be right back, Mai dear."

Mai rolled her eyes at the pun, watching him walk away.

The Egyptian deposited his bag with the others in the cloakroom at the back of storage. He didn't really see the point in him taking his bag everywhere, but it made him feel better that his knife was nearby, and he'd shoved in his camera as well, just in case there was an opportunity that night to take photos for his work. He would keep both of them on him without the bag, but he had been told off by his boss for having either of them on his person. The knife because it was illegal anyway, the camera just in case someone thought he was collecting blackmail material... which he had done once or twice but never used, and only for the teachers in university that he didn't like. Ones he would happily cause to get sacked if he was so inclined. The whole scandal might make university life more interesting.

When Marik walked back out, Mai had vanished, most likely backstage, as it looked like they were ready to open up the club now. He gave a friendly nod to his fellow bartender, Alister, who also attended his university but never saw him. They simply did different courses.

The bouncers called to everyone that they were officially opening, and the strobe lights suddenly flickered to life, flashing neon colours around the room, which bounced off of mirrors and through glass tables. The doors were yanked open, and in mere moments, a huge crowd of people were filtering in to enjoy their evening.

Marik put on his best grin as the first of his customers approached, keeping an eye out for anyone with white hair.

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R+R, 'cause Ryou is in a strip club next chapter D


	9. Chapter 9: Take Two

I'd like to apologise for such a long wait in updating this. Exams and college work completely drained any and all motivation and creativity I had for this so it was really hard to write enough to call a chapter.

But the majority of my exams are over, and while I don't think I'll be updating every week, it'll certainly be every fortnight :D

With that out of the way, enjoy the fic!

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**Halfway to Nowhere**

Chapter 9 - _Take Two and Kill Me in the Morning_

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The first hour or so was reasonably quiet, with the early arrivers being regulars and therefore pretty decent people. There were always a few burly looking waiters around, keeping an eye out for any trouble, which they sometimes got as it was on the edge of the gay village. Marik himself had once or twice nearly been yanked over the bar by some homophobic asshole who was a little bit too drunk and thought he was making a pass at them. The blonde could take care of himself, however, and had knocked them flying before anyone even realised what was going on.

The strip show wasn't due to start until around an hour and a half after the place opened for the evening, so they got the majority of their customers just before the show started, and just after. With it being the weekend, Marik noticed a lot of students from the university were in, some of whom he recognised by appearance only, a few whom he knew the names of. He still didn't notice anyone with white hair. Or at least white hair and pale skin, as he could've sworn he saw Akefia at some point.

He decided to adhere to the phrase, 'A watched pot never boils', and stopped looking for his friend. The tanned Egyptian paid attention to his customers, mixing up cocktails and serving beers at the same time as casually flirting and avoiding the more drunken advances some people gave. He became so caught up in his work that he didn't notice the person who came right up the bar, a nearly identical younger male next to him.

"Ishtar, give me a Screaming Orgasm." Bakura cackled, watching Marik as he flinched in surprise.

"Sweet Zombie Jesus, you came out of nowhere!" Marik swore, clutching his chest in dramatic shock, nearly dropping the beer he was handing over to a nearby customer.

"That's what he said." Bakura grinned. "Now give me a Screaming Orgasm, bitch."

"Yeah, yeah." Marik shook his head with a smirk. He gave Bakura a look over and grinned at the sight of the albino wearing a sleeveless shirt, open with a fishnet top underneath. "I'll have you screaming all night long, Fluffy. What's your friend having?"

"Just a Blowjob for him." The albino turned to the other beside him, watching him shake his head in disbelief.

"Actually, I'd prefer a Good Fuck." The younger boy grinned at Bakura, who rolled his eyes.

"Hah, I love this kid." Marik laughed. "He knows kinky cocktails."

"What do you expect? He's my brother." Bakura shrugged, flinging an arm around the smaller boy's shoulders. "This is Ryou."

"Well, nice to meet you, Mr Ryou. I'm Marik." The blonde curtsied, pulling on the sides of his shirt like a dress, while holding the cocktail shakers, flinging one of the shakers in the air expertly when he straightened himself.

"I know. I've heard stories about you." Ryou smiled enigmatically. Marik had to like the kid. It was obvious he was Bakura's sibling, with a similar sense of humour, if only with a bit more sugar than the older albino's bitter personality. Their near identical appearance was also an indicator. They could've easily been twins instead of having a year between them.

"Good things, I hope." Marik said, handing over Bakura's cocktail and quickly setting to work on Ryou's.

"Of course not. You're an asshole and you know it." Bakura smirked, leaning against the bar. "When's the show starting? We wanna get good seats."

"Twenty minutes or so. Maybe ten. I dunno. What time is it?" The tanned male straining the cocktail into a glass, putting a little umbrella in it before handing it to Ryou.

"Hey, why didn't I get a brolly thing?" Bakura pouted around a mouthful of drink. "And I dunno what time it is. You should have a clock in here."

"They don't have a clock in here because they don't want you to know what time it is so you stay longer." Ryou explained with a sweet smile. "Same with casinos. Also why they don't have windows."

"I really like the kid." Marik grinned. "He knows random-ass information."

Bakura shrugged again. "Like I said, he's my brother. He's smarter than me."

Marik put a hand to his face in mock shock. "Oh my God! Bakura is actually admitting someone is better than him? Mercy me, has Hell frozen over?"

Ryou rolled his eyes. "I'm sure Satan is very pissed off at you. C'mon, 'Kura. Show will be starting soon."

"VIP section should have your names down." Marik told them, much to the surprise of the two albinos. "I took the liberty of making sure you two had good seats, right next to the stage."

"Oh, I fucking love you, man." Bakura grinned widely. "If I didn't need to drag Ry' over to the stage I'd jump across the bar and kiss you."

"I'll have to take a rain-check on that." Marik rolled his eyes with a smirk. "Off! I have work to do."

"Laters, dude!" Bakura waved over his shoulder, dragging Ryou behind him.

"Thanks, Marik." Ryou smiled, happily keeping up with his older brother.

The Egyptian watched the two disappear into the crowd and shook his head. He hoped he could get off early, or at least have a break so he could hang around with the two albinos. He rarely spoke to Bakura outside of university, simply because he rarely came out of his cavern of a room, and when he did it was only for class, work, or if Ryou was over. Ryou himself seemed like an interesting guy to Marik as well. There was just something... different about him. It made Marik curious. (Which made him think 'Curiosity killed the cat', followed quickly by 'but satisfaction brought it back'.)

Over by the stage, Bakura and Ryou had easily gotten into the VIP section, as per Marik's promise. It was simply a more comfortable seating area, sectioned off by velvet rope and a quite feminine bouncer, who winked at the two albino boys as they passed. Ryou fought back a blush as Bakura teased him about it. "See? You're such a pretty boy." He chuckled. Ryou punched his arm in jest.

"Shut the fuck up, or I'll pour this cocktail on your pants." The younger boy threatened with a good-natured grin.

"Don't talk to me about cocks in your pants." Bakura grinned back, chuckling. "We could have some pretty weird conversations about that, dear brother."

Ryou rolled his eyes, still smiling. "Y'know, most normal people would have a better conversation than this."

"If we were most normal people, you wouldn't be in the situation you're in." Bakura shrugged, taking a big mouthful of his cocktail whilst eyeing the stage, waiting for the dancers to come out. "You should be glad I'm not what most people call normal."

"I am, believe me." The smaller albino said honestly, just as the club dimmed and the coloured stage lights turned on. "Oh, show's starting."

Bakura grinned. "Remind me to thank Marik later for some fucking amazing seats."

"I'm pretty sure you'll remember yourself." Ryou laughed, leaning back in his rather comfortable chair, just as the first of the women came strutting onto the stage.

Back at the bar, the line of customers had died down slightly as people sat down to watch the show. This allowed Marik to just sit back and chill for a while, able to watch the people on stage from where he worked, which he did so with a grin. He could easily spot the two white haired teens near the stage, the coloured lights reflecting off of their pale hair. The Egyptian wondered if they should install UV lights, which would no doubt make their white locks glow in the dark club. He chuckled. That would be highly amusing. Especially since he knew black-lights also made cum stains show up on people's clothes. That would be interesting as well.

Marik knew that his ex-girlfriend and co-worker, Mai, would be on second to last. They saved the final two performances for the most popular dancers, of which Mai Valentine was one. She always refused to be on last, however, for whatever reason was in her head. Marik didn't actually know why, and he was pretty sure he'd been told at some point, but of course he'd forgotten and all he knew was that someone else was the final performer now.

"Marik." His fellow bartender prodded him in the side, and Marik turned, assuming he was being told to get back to work. "Suzie says you can take a break. Bar's quiet now, but get back before the show finishes."

The blonde grinned widely. "Hell yeah! Thanks man!" He cheered, pulling off his bartending shirt to shove under the bar, leaving him shirtless as he, for once, skipped through the door at the back to exit the proper way. He quickly made his way over to the two albinos in the VIP area, patting Damien, the bouncer, on the shoulder as he was let through.

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R+R, even though I took so long to update ^^;;; Reviews make me feel loved. You get drunk-Bakura next chapter.


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